Sheet metal can



Sept. 27, 1932.

A. G. HOPKINS 1,879,873

SHEET-METAL CAN FledJuly 27, 1932 INVENTOR ATTO RN EY5 Patented Sept.V 27, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT or-FicE ARTHUR G. HOPKINS, Ol' HASPETH, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO METAL PACKAGE COR- POBATION, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE 'f SHEET METAL vCAN appuation med July 27,

This invention relates to metallic receptacles such as sheet metal cans, and relates more particularly to sheet metal cans of the air-tight or vacuum type provided with a tearing strip for opening the same.

The prime object of my present invention centers about the provision of an improved sheet metal can of the double closure and vacuum sealed type; -one of the closures being provided with a tearing strip which when removed leaves a slip'cover adapted for use with the can until the contents have been consumed.

In my copending application Serial No. 463,411 to sheet metal can filed June 24,1939, I disclose an improved vacuum can of this type comprising a can body'having a top edge and a formed circumferential bead located a short distance fromsaid top edge and protruding outwardly from the side of the can body, and a can top cooperating therewith and consisting of a cover wall adapted to mate with or fit onto the to edge of the can body and a depending wall aving a bottom edge which is rolled together into a per manent lock seam joint with the said formed circumferential bead of the can body whereby the cover Wall and the top edge of the can body are forced into close and sealing engagement; the depending wall of the can top is also provided with a plurality of weakened lines defining a tear strip, which tear strip when removed leaves a slip cover forthe can.

This forms one of the closures of the can, the other closure comprising a can bottom which may be lock seamed to the bottom edge of the can body, and which said closure is preferably attached in position after the can has been filled with its contents.l

I have found that the process of manufacture of this sheet metal can may be greatly facilitated and rendered more economical, to produce, moreover, an improved sheet metal can structure, b providing for the formed circumferential be choring element preferably in the form of a ring separate from the can body, which anchoring element is seated in or onto the can body inthe position occupied by the bead, the depending wall of the can top being anchored ad of the can body an a`n 1932. Serial No. 625,091.

to said anchoring element for effectin the sealing engagement between the can ody and the can cover. By this means I am enabled to eliminate a number of forming operations required to form the said circumferential bead and a number of other forming operations required to mate the bottom edge of the dependin Wall of the can cover with the said bead. oreover,by virtue of the anchor or hold provided or presented by the c anchoring elementor ring, a more effective seal is produced between the top edge of the and such other objects as will hereinafter appear, my invention consists'in the sheet metal can elements and their relation one to the other, as hereinafter more particularly described in the specification and sought to be defined in the claims. The specification is accompanied by drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a cross-sectional elevational view of the sheet metal can of the present invention in completed assembly,

Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional fragmentary view showing the relation of parts of the can prior to anchoring the top closure to the can body,

Fig. 3 is an elevational view of the part of the can body shown in Fig. 2 and showing the exterior appearance thereof, and particularly of the tearing strip employed, and

Figs. 4 to 6 are views showing 'modiica-' tions.

Referring now more in detail to the drawing, the sheet metal can is of the type comprising a can body A, a top closure generally designated as B, and a bottom closure generally designated as C, both top and bottom closures being attached or joined to the can body without the use of soldered seams to provide a perfectly air-tight can structure the can body, and desirably embodies the rip suitable for use as a vacuum container. strip construction set forth and claimed in The body A preferably consists of a single my copending application filed concurrently sheet of metal suitably formed to ive the herewith, Serial No. 625,090. The ri strip can the desired configuration, whic in the comprises a section integral with the diependpresent case is cylindrical; and the mouth or ing wall12 formed by th'e parallelly arranged upper edge 10 of said can body is preferably p and outwardly struck beads 17 17 and the curled and crimped to form a to sealing score lines 18, 18, the beads 17, 17 being arsurface, which surface is prefera ly made ranged preferably within but closely adjacent substantially flat, as clearly shown ink the to the score lines 18, 18. These beads serve drawing. The closure or can top B comto greatly stiien and strengthen the rip strip prises a cover wall 11 and a dependin wall by reason of the channel effect created there- 12 having a slip or engaging lit over t e top by, the beads also acting as guides or tracks of the can body, the said cover Wall 11 being when rolling up the rip strip, thereby conpreferably dished so as to provide a marginal straining the rip strip to roll up in a smooth, annular portion 11a also desirably flat so as to straight and even manner. The said rip cooperate with the Hat edge 10 of the can stripis provided with a tab 19 which maybe body and which annular portion forms a re-v if desired (but need not be) sealed againstl cess for a sealing medium or compound 13. leakage, the said tab being adapted to receive In the assembling of these parts, requisite a winding or rip strip key of the conventional pressure is applied to the closure B to insure type. When the rip strip is torn or removed a perfect seal between the fiat sealing edge from the can, the anchoring elements 12, 14 10, the sealing compound 13 and the recess and l'remain on the caninpermanent locked formed by the annulus 11, Fig. 2of the drawrelation, while the remaining part of the p ing showing the parts prior to the applicaclosure A forms a slip cover for the can.

t1on of pressure, and Fig. 1 showing the rela- The bottom and filling closure C of the can tion of the parts after pressure has been a is of the conventional type, the same being plied and the parts locked together by t e lock seamed at the bottom edge of the can means to be described presently.

To lock the parts in the assembed relation art. The can body may also be provided with shown in Fig. 1, I provide a separate ancborintermediate circumferential beads 21, 21 foring element which in one of its simplest asstrengthening purposes, it having been found pects consistsof a wire ring 14 which may be desirable to use such strengthening beads in slipped onto the can body into a seating the can construction of the present invention, means located a short distance below the top since I have found that in the use of cans emedge ofthe canbody, which seating means in bodying the resent invention, very high one of its simplest aspects may consist of an vacuums may e effected. inwardly directedcircumferential groove 15.` The sheet metal can of the present inven- To permit the wire ring to be readily slipped tion is attended with many advantages in can onto the can body, the same may comprlse a manufacture and in the use of the resulting split ring, indicated at 16 in Fig. 3 of the product. It will be noticed that the removal drawin The ring when seated defines an of the rip strip does not in any way alter the outwardly directed bead aroundthe smooth height of the can or container. The upper surface of which appropriate parts of the deportion of the can is'held rigid due to a numpending wall-12 of. the canl closure may be ber of contributing causes. The extreme upreadily anchored. Preferably the depending per edge of the can has a curled and crimped wall 12 is made of a height such that the lowportion of a double thickness of metal which er edge portion 12a thereof overlies the anhstrengthens the said edge to a marked degree. choring rin 14 when the can top or closure is The upper section of the can is also stiffened applied to lie can body, as shown in Fig. 2, by virtue of the encircling wire ring 14 and and such that when the requisite pressure is its seating bead 15. The upper portion of applied to the closure the said lower edge 12a the can body is thus rendered very rigid and of the depending wall underhan s the anas a result will maintain a close cooperating choring ring 14 in position to e readily lit with the can closure. The can closure is curled or crimped around and beneath andY also rigid due to its coniiofuration, due also thus anchored to the ring, as clearly shown to the rip strip beads 17 1 and due further in Fig. 1 of the drawing. The forming operf to the anchoring engagement of the lower ations for producing the anchoring means on edge of the closure with the anchoring ring the can body and forproducingthe locking of 14. Due to this rigidity and strengthening the closure to the can body are thus rendered of the closure, it also maintains a close coopextremely simple and a close fitting and tight erating fit with the rigid upper portion ofthe seal at the upper edge of the can is`assured. can body. In view of the fact that a vsubstan- The can closure A is preferably provided tially erfect seal is produced at the upper with a tear or rip strip located intermediate end o the can, `combined with the conventhe anchoring element and the top edge of tional double seam at the lower end of the body, as at I20, in a manner well known to the the up can, it is ap arent that no soldered seams are necessary. en the rip stri is removed, r section of the can y still retains its rigidity due now not only to the factors mentioned, but also to the permanently anchored lower edge 12 of the can closure. The cans may be manufactured in large uantities at a very low cost due to the simpli ed processing steps used in the manufacture thereof. The simplified processing permits the can bodies to be made without unduly stressing or straining the material thereof, since the seating groove 15 may be shallow and requires no speclal formation. By means of the present invention, rip strip cans of various odd crosssectional shapes may be made such as elliptical, square shaped and the like, such odd shapes being diicult to make where the can has to be specially formed to produce anchoring elements integral therewith; the use of separate anchoring elements as herein set forth permits these odd shaped can structures to be readily manufactured.

In Figs. 4 to 6 I show a number of possible modifications that may be made in the structure of the anchoring means. In Fig. 4 the seating groove 15 is replaced by a Vplurality of spaced protruding nibs 15n in which the separate wire ring is seated. In Fig. 5 the seating means is formed by two small parallel beads 15", 15" and the separate anchoring e1e ment is formed by a wire 14* substantially semi-circular instead of circular in crosssection. Thus' the inwardly directed groove may be eliminated, and only that outward protrusion provided which is serviceable for anchoring urposes. In Fig. 6 there is shown a rin ma e up of two parts (and which may be ma e of more thantwo parts) instead of a split ring, the parts of which rin may be received by such nibs 15", 15 of ligig. 4 with a forced fit.

It will be apparent that while I have shown and describedmy invention in the preferred form, many changes and modifications may be made in the structure disclosed without departing 'from the spirit of the invention, defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. A sheet metal can comprising a can body having a top edge and provided with seating meansf located a short distance below saidY top edge, a separate anchoring element held i' said seating means, a can top consisting of a cover wall adapted to fit onto and make sealing engagement with the top edgeof the can body and a depending Wall having a part overlying said anchoring element, and means in said overlying part of said depending wall anchored to said anchoring element for holding the said cover wall andtop edge of the can body into mutual close and sealing engagement, and the depending.A wall of said can top being provided with a plurality of weakened lines defining a tear strip, said tear having a top edge and provided with an inf wardly directed groove, located a short distance below said top edge, an anchoring ring seated in said groove and defining an outwardly directed bead, a can top consisting of a cover wall adapted to it onto and make sealing engagement with the top edge of the can body and a depending wall having a bottom edge overlying said anchoring ring, said bottom edge being rolled under and anchored tosaid anchoring ring when the can top is forced into closure position whereby the said cover wall and top edge of the can body are locked into mutual close and sealing engagement, and the depending wall of said can top being provided with a plurality of weakened lines defining a tear strip, said tear strip being located intermediate the anchoring ring and the top edge of the can body.

3. A sheet metal can comprising a can body having a mouth, said body having such formation as to provide a seating means below said mouth, a separateV rigid anchoring element held by said seating means, a can-top consisting of a cover wall adapted to lit onto and make sealing engagement with said mouth of the can body and a de ending wall engaging the wall of the can ody having a part overlying said anchoring element, means in said overlying part of said depending'wall shaped onto and beneath and anchored to said anchoring element, the said depending wall between the anchoring element and said mouth being under tension by virtue of the action of the anchoring element against its seatingmeans and the anchoring of said de' pending wall part to the anchoring means, and means in said can top separated from said anchoring element for severing the can top from the can body.

4. A sheet metal can comprising a can body" having a mouth, said body having such formation as to provide a seatin means below said mouth, an anchoring rlng held by said seating means, a. can top consisting of a cover wall adapted to fit onto-.and make sealing engagement with said mouth of the can body and a depending wall engaging thewall of the can body and having a part overlying said anchoring ring, a sealing medium interposed between said mouth and the said cover wall-of the can top, means in said overlying part of saiddepending wall shaped onto and beneath and anchored to said anchoring ring, the said sealing medium being compressed by virtue ofthe action of the anchoring ring against its-seating means and the anchoring 'loo of said depending wall partto the anchoring 5. A sheei:y metal can comprising a can body having a .top edge and provided with seating' means located a short distance below said top edge, a separate anchoring element held by `5 said seating means, a can top consisting of a cover wall adapted to fit onto and make sealing engagement with the top edge of the can body and a depending wall having a part overlying said anchoring element when the 10 can topis placed in closure position, means in said overlying art of said dependingvwall adapted to be s aped onto and anchored to said anchoring element for holding the said cover wall and top ed e of the can body in 15 mutual close and seallng engagement, and

means in said can top separated from said anchoring element for severing the, can top from the can bod v Signed at New Nork in the county of Kings 20 and State of New York, this 26th day of July, A. D. 1932.

ARTHUR G. HOPKINS. 

